All Things Considered by Allison McDonnell

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Morgan Martin liked his job. Of course, he still wasn't much more than just a glorified paper-pusher. Some things would never change. Plus, the hours were long, the work was often tedious and a few of the colonists were perpetually difficult. But since Devon had promoted him to the position of Deputy Administrator, for the very first time in his life, he felt important to people other than Bess. In fact, he was now considered to be a respected figure in the community. Best of all, thanks in no small part to his efforts, New Pacifica was quickly becoming the flourishing settlement that Devon had promised to provide the Syndrome families so many years before. He was making a difference. And it felt pretty darn good.

Although the sun was still lazily rising over the eastern ridge, Morgan was already firmly ensconced in his office, dictating notes from his prior day's meeting with the Agricultural Committee. He was completely relaxed and had leaned all the way back in his chair with both of his feet leisurely stretched out across the desk, his palms pressed together at his chest level in the praying position, deep in thought as he recorded pertinent information into his gearlog. He was so focused on the task at hand that he failed to notice that Danziger had arrived and was currently standing in his doorway.

"Morgan."

The bureaucrat didn't respond and continued his dictation, so John attempted to get his attention again. "Morgan!" he called out more forcefully while loudly rapping his knuckle against the door's frame.

It worked. So startled was Morgan that he jumped in his chair and involuntary lifted his feet, propelling him forward and almost launching him across the desk. He was able to catch himself in time, but he still felt rather stupid. John Danziger had a habit of making him feel that way. It wasn't as if the two of them were adversaries any more. But they weren't exactly friends either and Morgan found it almost impossible not to trip over his words-- or his feet-- whenever Danziger was around. He would probably always be a little afraid of John's intimidating nature just as he'd always feel the pangs of guilt over abandoning John and the others when he'd pirated one of the three escape pods on the Roanoke.

Unbeknownst to Morgan, Danziger was feeling rather awkward himself. "I looked around for your receptionist, but I didn't see her anywhere," he shrugged, sounding almost apologetic for accidentally frightening the man.

"Um, she's not in yet," Morgan said as he removed his gearset and retucked a few loose hairs back into his ponytail. "If you're looking for Devon, she had an early board meeting over at the hospital and, after that, she's scheduled to spend the rest of the morning in the Syndrome ward."

"Yeah, Uly already told me. I'm here to see you," he stated plainly as he sank into the seat across from him. "I need your help, Martin."

Morgan looked at John as if he'd grown a second head. Something must be pretty wrong if Danziger is coming to ME for help, Morgan inwardly speculated. After inspecting him a little more closely, he realized that Danziger seemed to be more unkempt than usual. As a matter of fact, he looked terrible. His clothing was so wrinkled that it gave the appearance that John had slept in them. Little did Morgan know that this was actually the case.

"What can I do for you?" he asked, wearing a hesitant smile.

"I need to put in a request for different housing," Danziger revealed in a low, gravelly voice. "Preferably something in town."

Morgan's head shot back. "For you?"

"Yeah, for me and True," he confirmed with a nod. "It doesn't have to be big. I'm sure anything that you have available will do just fine."

"Uh, have you, um," Morgan stumbled, his nervousness going into overdrive as he tried to get out the question. "Have you talked to Devon about this?"

John's face darkened. "There's nothin' to talk to her about."

When Morgan began shaking his head in bewilderment, Danziger further explained, "It's best that I move out. People around here are gettin' the wrong impression about Devon and me because we're living in the same house. It's hurting her reputation."

Morgan's eyes narrowed. "Devon doesn't care about her reputation," he said incredulously.

"But I do," John insisted, harnessing all of his mental strength so that his face and voice remained stonelike. "These new folks think that she's sleeping with a Drone and a lot of them are lookin' at her differently because of it. They're judging her. It may not be right, but that's what's going on. And I can't let it continue, especially when it's damaging her ability to lead."

He hoped that his explanation would be enough to appease Morgan. He certainly had no intention of going into the other reason that he felt the sudden need to leave.

He added, "Look, I know that True and Devon are close and I promise to make sure that they still get to spend lots of time with each other. Maybe True can sleep at Devon's house sometimes." He roughly raked his hand through his hair and shrugged his shoulders. "I'm not sure how we'll handle it, but we'll work something out."

Morgan remained unconvinced as well as unsure exactly how to best respond. "I don't feel right about doing this. Devon doesn't like it when people go behind her back," he relayed, selecting his words with caution. "Why don't you sleep on this for a couple of days? Or, even better, why don't you discuss this with Devon? I'm sure that once you tell her what you're planning to do-"

Although he appreciated that Morgan was trying his best to be helpful, Danziger could no longer listen to his suggestions.

"There's someone else in her life, Martin," he interrupted.

The bureaucrat's mouth went agape. "What are you talking about?"

John's gaze fell to the floor and he took a deep breath. "Devon is involved with another man," he revealed, now only partially successful at trying to keep his voice as even as possible. "She's trying to keep it under wraps, probably because she doesn't want the town to know her business. She might also be hidin' it out of some misguided sense of obligation to me. Because of what I gave up to bring her back."

It took a moment or two for Morgan to respond. "You know, uh, this is probably just a big misunderstanding. I think that you may be confused," he offered with a theatrical wave of his fingers. "I get that way sometimes, too. Bess says that it's due to stress and because I'm sort of high-strung."

John's dejected stare refocused on the bureaucrat. "I saw them, okay?" he blurted out. Morgan's eyes widened as John continued, "I mean, I overheard Devon talking to him last night. And don't worry, I'm not gonna ask who he is." Although it's obvious by your expression that you know his identity, Danziger said to himself.

"I just-" John continued before pausing to exhale another tired breath. "Devon deserves to have some happiness in her life for a change. My leaving could be the first step in making that happen. She already has enough to worry about without havin' to keep secrets in her own home. After I go, she'll be free to do what she wants." His eyes plummeted back to his feet. "I need to move on with my life, so she can move on with hers."

As Morgan observed John, in his mind, the mechanic looked and acted like a man who had been completely destroyed inside. Morgan was reminded of how, years before, Danziger had exhibited similar behavior after the group had placed Devon in cold-sleep. He also recalled that what had finally pulled John out of his despair was the discovery of what it would take to bring her back. It had become abundantly clear to everyone in Eden Advance that, although Danziger may have donated his bio-chip and forfeited over two years of his life out of a sense of responsibility, he'd also done it out of love. And, as far as Morgan was concerned, after all that John had given up, it was terribly unfair for him to be put through this emotional wringer now. The man deserved some answers. Morgan just didn't want to be the one to provide them. There was no way that he was willingly stepping into that minefield.

Morgan figured that, when in doubt as to what to do, it can never hurt to stall. "Let me look into this, um, housing situation," he declared, modestly successful at keeping his twitchiness to a minimum. "I'll get back to you by this evening," he added, gently tapping the gearset on the desk in front of him.

Danziger lumbered to his feet and outstretched his hand. "Thanks, Martin," he said with sincerity, inadvertently pulling Morgan up to the standing position with his powerful grip.

"Sure," the bureaucrat replied through gritted teeth, trying not to wince at the firmness of the handshake. "That's what I'm here for, right?"

John gave him a final nod before relinquishing his hand and exiting the office. Morgan waited, listening intently for the sounds of John making his way back down the hallway and then descending the staircase. It was only after Morgan had detected the faint echo of the main door of the building swinging to a close that he finally permitted himself to have a meltdown.

He dropped back into his chair and began to theatrically shake his head back and forth. "Oh, boy, oh, boy, oh, boy. This isn't happening. This is not happening. Why me? Why does this always happen to me?" he mumbled in a barely coherent rant. "That's it. I'm a dead man. The only question is who's going to kill me first, Devon or Danziger?"

He rubbed at his now-throbbing temples and speculated aloud about what horrible atrocity he could have possibly committed in a prior life that could warrant this hornet's nest being dumped into his lap in this one. After a few more seconds of wallowing in his newfound misery, Morgan reached for his gearset to call Bess. Surely, she would know what to do.

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As usual, there was no rest for the weary.

Despite an almost mind-numbing lack of sleep, after he'd left Morgan's office, Danziger had opted to stay as busy as possible. But instead of his scheduled job at the University construction site, he'd decided to spend the day installing a wooden fence which would eventually enclose a little less than half a hectare of land. Apparently, there was almost an entire crateload of genetically engineered sheep embryos patiently waiting in stasis until one of Devon's biologists punched in the correct key code to bring them to life. Plus, they were waiting for the fence to be built. Danziger specifically chose this task because the animals were going to be housed in an unpopulated area on the outskirts of town. At the moment, it was safe to say that he wasn't really in the mood for socializing.

His self-imposed exile was loudly interrupted by the roar of two approaching Dunerails. They slowed to a stop and parked next to John's own recently allotted 'Rail and its occupants immediately started piling out of the vehicles. Yale, Alonzo, Morgan, Bess, Magus, Cameron, Uly and True began to make their way across the field to his location.

Danziger began to mutter profanity, scolding himself for his stupidity for trusting that Morgan would be able to keep his big mouth shut. He should have known better. Besides, as far as John was concerned, his decision to move out of Devon's house certainly didn't merit a visit from half of the members of Eden Advance. And what made an already bad situation even worse was that they had taken it upon themselves to involve True and Uly in their meddling before he'd been given the chance to fill them in on his relocation plans. That was just the icing on the cake.

By the time the small group reached him, John had successfully reigned in his foul language, but he continued to take out his aggression on a defenseless wooden stake as he pounded it into the ground with a large mallet.

He briefly glanced at the children in between forceful swings. "Aren't you two supposed to be in school?" he said in a flat, disinterested tone.

By this point in her life, True was well-versed in her father's passive-aggressive behavior and she wasn't the least bit fooled by his deceptively neutral voice and expression. And she'd also become an expert on exactly how to handle him when he acted this way.

She shrugged. "We were, but Yale came and got us," the girl answered just as offhandedly. "Aren't you supposed to be installing the plumbing for the University building?"

"I was," he grunted as the mallet struck its wooden mark, "but it was too crowded." He paused for a moment to give the group a pointed look before going back to his hammering.

John's friends and family were undeterred by his less than subtle declaration that he wished to be left alone. They also chose to ignore that the mechanic was dangerously close to losing his patience and blowing his top, all while he was holding something that could be used as a weapon. This was because they were on a mission-- an intervention, of sorts-- and time was of the essence. And John's habit of running off to hide every time he was confronted by an issue that he found too emotionally taxing ended up working in the group's favor as well. It afforded them a unique opportunity to approach him outside of the eyes and earshot of New Pacifica's newer residents, which was an essential part of their plan. What they had to discuss with Danziger had to remain between the members of Eden Advance.

Yale decided to begin. "We need to talk to you about a rather delicate subject matter."

John dropped his hammer to the ground and wiped the perspiration from his brow with the back of his sleeve, his hard stare squarely centered on Morgan the entire time.

Bess stepped directly into John's line of sight as Morgan conspicuously shuffled behind her for safety.

"Please don't be mad at Morgan," she appealed on her husband's behalf. "He was in between a rock and a hard place. He called me right after you left his office. He told me what you'd asked him to do." She hesitated briefly. "He also told me what you saw last night."

Bess detected a flash of emotion in John's eyes at the latter comment. Her tone was sympathetic as she continued, "I called Yale for advice and we decided to contact some of the others to get their opinions. We ended up pulling True and Uly out of class because they deserved to know what was going on, too."

"This affects all of us, Dad," True said. "Not just you and Devon."

John nodded his acknowledgment, understanding that True must be hurt at finding out about the upcoming change in their living situation from someone other than him. He instinctively bent down on one knee in order to speak with her eye-to-eye, momentarily forgetting how much she'd grown over the past few years. As such, he ended up craning his neck upward to meet his daughter's gaze.

"Yeah, I realize that it also affects you and Uly and I was planning on talkin' to the both of you about all of this tonight after Morgan got back to me." His fatherly tone took on a slight edge as he added, "But I don't see how movin' into town is anybody else's business but ours."

"That's because you don't know the whole story," Uly was quick to point out as John returned to the upright position.

"You told Morgan that you want Devon to be happy. We want that, too. For the both of you," Alonzo expressed. "We've been trying to protect you, but this isn't working."

"So, we've decided that it would be best to tell you the truth," Cameron said, obviously ill at ease.

Magus was just as uncomfortable. "Devon has no idea that we're here," she squirmed. "She's gonna have our hides for this."

"I believe that incurring Devon's wrath is the least of our worries right now," Yale noted in a voice filled with concern.

The tutor neglected to mention that the group had briefly considered engaging in a similar tactic and confronting Devon, instead of John. However, the suggestion had been quickly nixed when it was unanimously concluded that, in addition to reacting negatively, Devon wouldn't have been swayed by their efforts. But Danziger, on the other hand, was a different matter entirely.

As they'd predicted, their cryptic words had definitely grasped Danziger's full attention. "Go on," he said as evenly as possible, hoping that he didn't look and sound as unsettled as he felt.

The crew traded nervous glances for a few seconds, silently wondering which one of them would continue with the heart of their confession. It was Alonzo who finally stepped up.

"Every one of us has been lying to you," he disclosed, speaking slowly. "It started years ago. The day before we put you in cryosleep."

"Well, they weren't exactly lies," Bess interjected, trying to put a positive spin on their actions. "More like sins of omission."

True didn't want her father to try to take command of the conversation, so she kept things moving. She took a stride forward and produced a small object from her pants pocket.

"First things first," she said, outstretching her hand with the tiny item now carefully wedged in between her thumb and forefinger. "There's something that we need to show you."

When John realized that True was holding a gearchip, he was no longer able to mask his shock. "What a minute, is that Dev-" he stumbled, flabbergasted. His horrified expression quickly transformed into disgust. "You gotta be kidding me. There's no way that I'm going in there!"

"You have to," Alonzo insisted, holding up his own gearset, correctly assuming that Danziger had purposely left his behind so that he'd remain undisturbed.

John continued to shake his head in both disbelief and in defiance, determined to stand his ground. That is, until he looked into the eyes of the one person in the world who he could never say no to.

"Please, Dad," True implored. "It's really important that you see this."

Danziger concluded that any further protest on his part would only put off the inevitable and, with obvious reluctance, he accepted the offered gearset and chip. He swept the loose strands of hair out of his eyes before placing the equipment on his head and carefully setting the chip into place. Although his face had reverted back to a stone demeanor, there was a fear in his eyes that couldn't be hidden, no matter how hard he'd tried. In fact, True could have sworn that she'd even detected a slight trembling of her father's hands as he slowly swung the eyepiece into position and initiated the VR program's start sequence.

There were streaks of blue and silver light along with the false sense of John's body being thrust forward in motion before the world around him seemingly disappeared and he rematerialized in a completely different location, an unlit room shrouded in silence. Danziger took several deep, cleansing breaths to regain his bearings while his eyes tried to adjust to the sudden blackness. He became aware that he was standing with his back against a wall as his right hand brushed what felt like a ladder directly next to him. Although the place struck him as oddly familiar, it was still nearly impossible for Danziger to see and he was greatly relieved when he finally detected a faint light emanating from the opposite side of the enclosure.

The almost deafening stillness was broken by the sound of his boots clanging against the metal floor as he guardedly made his way across the room, unsure as to what or perhaps who he would find at the other end. His attention was briefly drawn to several groupings of dull red and white lights on various computer equipment which were scattered throughout the chamber. It wasn't until he'd reached the other wall that he came to the stunning realization of where he was. His heart launched into his throat when he recognized that he was standing in the belly of a perfectly replicated VR image of Franklin Bennett's Venus-class starship. He swung his head toward the source of the light and was stunned to come face to face with a lifeless copy of himself entombed in a cold-sleep crypt.

Nearly paralyzed by shock, he staggered forward the final few steps toward the image in a stupor, colliding into a metal chair which had been placed directly in front of the cryotube in the process. He barely noticed the nearby flash of light which alerted him that True had joined him in VR.

True immediately closed the short distance between them and grabbed her father's hand, squeezing it tighter and tighter until she was finally able to break his trance and he turned to look at her. She was the very picture of composure as she gestured back to John's likeness in the cryochamber.

"This is the other man-- the only man-- in Devon's life," she said plainly.

John's mind was swirling and he could only stare at True with widened eyes for a few moments. Then, without saying a word, he yanked his hand from his daughter's grasp and reached up toward his temple to deactivate his unseen gear.

After he'd vanished from the room, True turned and glanced sadly at her father's inert image, finally allowing her pain to show. Unlike Devon who, over time, had seemed to have gotten used to viewing John in that state, True had never become comfortable enough to visit him in the VR program that Morgan had made for them both. True couldn't bear to see her Dad like that back then and, despite his full recovery, she didn't like seeing him that way now. In fact, this was the very first time that she had ever used her copy of the chip. And it would very likely be the last.

She exhaled a heavy sigh before ending the program and returning to reality. She was just in time to see her father rip the gearset from his head. His face had turned ashen and he looked as though he was almost in a daze.

"This- this doesn't make any sense," he was finally able to sputter out.

"It will if you let us explain," Cameron responded.

Alonzo took the gearset from John's hand and placed it back into the front pocket of his jacket. He'd wished that it had been possible for Julia to slip out of the hospital and accompany the group to see Danziger. Unfortunately, much like Devon, the doctor was also currently living her life under a microscope and abandoning her scheduled shift might have aroused the suspicions of Devon and the colonists as to her whereabouts, so she was forced to remain behind. Alonzo shook his head in frustration. Julia would be so much better at getting John to understand this mess, he thought to himself.

"I want you to think back to when Devon was in cryosleep and you were trying to get Julia to agree to perform the transplant. You two must've screamed at each other for almost five days straight," the pilot expressed in a serious tone. "Didn't you ever wonder why Julia seemed to change her mind overnight? Why she'd suddenly said yes when she'd been so against it only hours before?"

"I figured that she finally came to her senses. There was no other option and we were running out of time," John answered, still looking baffled.

"No," Bess clarified. "Alonzo was the one who finally convinced her to go through with it." She paused and swallowed hard. "Because he saw what would've happened to you if she didn't."

"'Lonz saw what would've happened to everybody," Danziger said in a strained voice, motioning back toward Solace. "The colony failed and we all died."

"Yes, but there is much more to it than that," Yale disclosed. "After several days had passed without Devon being revived, the Terrians grew impatient. They brought Alonzo back to the Dreamplane and demanded an explanation for why nothing had been done. They then decided to provide him with more specifics about our future if the circumstances were not changed."

All eyes fell upon Alonzo to continue with the explanation as only he could. "It was all very sketchy. The images were jumbled," he said, running his hands through his dark hair. "But the Terrians were very clear on certain key points."

He wore a crestfallen expression as he pivoted to face John directly. "I saw the colony ship arrive. Things went bad as soon as they landed. They were furious that Devon wasn't there and because you had been left in charge. You did your best, but most of them wouldn't listen to you."

The pilot shifted uncomfortably and his eyes fell to the ground. "I'm not sure if it was part of a conspiracy or if it was someone acting on their own, but the Terrians made sure to show me the very first step of the colonists' rebellion-- their rejection of the planet. It was to commit a murder." He redirected his gaze back to Danziger. "Yours."

True successfully stifled her tears and sounded more like a grown-up than ever before as she revealed, "In the original timeline, you and Devon never saw each other again. You were already dead by the time we'd healed her." She let out a shuddering breath. "In both versions of the future, Devon was given your bio-stat implant."

Danziger was feeling completely overwhelmed and he stumbled two steps backward, shaking his head ferociously as he tried to make sense of it all. He barely heard Yale continue, "We're not sure if this means that Victoria Taggert would have survived if we hadn't changed things. We were never able to determine the exact point at which her cryotube malfunctioned. There is a possibility that it could have been during the three month delay. A lot of us feel really guilty about that, particularly Devon."

The confession was followed by several moments of awkward silence while the crew patiently waited for John to process the details of what he'd just learned. After finally composing himself enough to speak coherently, the mechanic croaked out, "You should have told me this sooner. I had a right to know all of this."

Magus shrugged her shoulders. "We thought that keeping you in the dark would be better for you in the long run," she said with compassion. "None of us wanted you to spend the rest of your life looking over your shoulder, wondering about which of the colonists had murdered you; and whether or not history would repeat itself."

"Our hearts were in the right places," Bess added, her tone and expression equally kind.

"Yeah, I mean, ignorance is supposed to be bliss, right?" Morgan exclaimed. John gave him an inscrutable look which caused Morgan to immediately scuttle back behind Bess again. One can never be too careful when it comes to a loose cannon like John Danziger, Morgan nervously rationalized to himself.

John's focus returned to the rest of the group. "So why spill the beans now?" he pressed.

"Because you deserve to know," Cameron answered. "And because you didn't leave us much of a choice."

Alonzo quickly clarified, "Everyone in Eden Advance has been watching over you to make sure that none of the colonists caused any trouble. But if you move into town, it'll make it almost impossible to protect you."

Uly took a small pace forward. "Plus, my Mom would be really upset if you left," he said in a heartfelt voice. "And so would I. I like having you and True live with us."

John reached out and gave Uly a fatherly pat on the head and, for the first time, he realized the severity of the loss he would feel if Uly suddenly wasn't there to interact with on a daily basis. The child had truly become like a son to him.

Meanwhile, Yale had begun to elaborate on Uly's first comment. "Devon misses you, John. She wants you living with her so that she can be certain that you remain safe, yet she also wants you there because she cares about you."

The former tutor's face grew solemn. "But she understands that she is walking a very fine line where you are concerned on both personal and professional levels. Devon's life is directly intertwined with the success of New Pacifica and, the more contact that she has with you, the more danger you could be in. There is not a doubt in my mind that she wishes that you were there at her side to help her run the colony. But she knows that if she gives you any type of a leadership position, or if she even gives off the appearance that you have become a trusted member of her inner circle, she could possibly be placing your life in peril. Devon will not risk that, even at the expense of her own happiness."

Danziger's gaze dropped to his feet and he remained deep in thought as he absorbed the weighty words of his friends and daughter. He knew that he should be angry. Hell, he should be furious at the fact that they'd kept so much from him, especially regarding what they knew about his fate before he had placed himself into cold sleep. But, at that moment, John was just plain overwhelmed by too many other feelings to focus in on any animosity or resentment that he might have harbored. Mostly, he was just relieved to finally get some answers.

Several moments of stillness followed before he lifted his eyes back to the small crowd. He brushed away the strands of now sweat-soaked hair that had fallen in front of his face to reveal a completely open expression. To a few of the members of Eden Advance, John appeared more vulnerable than they could ever remember seeing him.

John turned his full attention to Alonzo. "So do you think that enough has changed? Is my situation all that different now than it was in the original timeline?" he asked, his voice reflecting the myriad of emotions that he was currently experiencing.

The pilot's answer was an honest one. "I don't know. The Terrians haven't shown me anything about what to expect in this future. I can only hope that that's a sign that we're on the right track." He cracked a small smile as he tried to put an optimistic foot forward. "As for your specific timeline, you're certainly safer now than you were before. The fact that you're still alive has to mean something, right?"

What Alonzo purposely failed to mention was that, long ago, he and the others had figured out that the Terrians' reason for sharing the details of John's grisly murder at the hands of the colonists had only been done in order to motivate Eden Advance to do as they had asked. The creatures had never had any interest in Danziger as an individual. Their sole concern was to save humanity as a whole. Had John's death really been averted by reviving Devon sooner than they had originally planned? Or had his demise only been delayed? HAD enough truly changed? There was really no way of knowing and the Terrians certainly didn't feel compelled to provide them with any answers.

Meanwhile, Cameron continued the conversation. "And who knows?" he declared. "Maybe being forewarned is being forearmed. Telling you the truth might've been the right decision all along."

"God forgive us, if we're wrong," a still worried Bess whispered under her breath.

Magus gave the Earth-res a gentle nudge with her elbow. "I don't know about God, but I'm sure that Devon never will."

True glanced at the two women to acknowledge that she had overheard their exchange before stepping forward and taking her father's hand in her own. "So, what are you gonna do now, Dad?"

John could only stare into True's large, brown eyes and shake his head. He had absolutely no idea how to answer her question.

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